For dogs and racing relationships, 18 years is a long time.

It was a glorious run for Donny Schatz and Tony Stewart Racing, and now it’s over. Donny takes his seat to a new car and Tony letters a new name on the side of his race car.

Life goes on. Just like that.

If you listen to the interviews and read the press releases, you’ll sense some conflict between the lines. Conflict and stress and contempt, those are the stakes that are eventually driven through the heart of every racing team. It’s been that way for more than a hundred years and it will be that way a hundred years from now.

Donny Schatz wins the Kings Royal at Eldora in 2016. (Doug Auld photo)

Naturally, people tend to want to figure good guys and bad guys. But if a driver and a team can work together for 18 successful seasons without tearing each other’s hair out, there are no bad guys. Just people who eventually wore each other out.

With both Schatz and TSR there are lots of things on the good side of the ledger and the negatives are miniscule. Together and individually, their performance has been historic and their behavior has been classy. Schatz is the best sprint car driver of his generation and TSR is the premier open wheel team in the country. Debating either point is silly.

I say again: no bad guys. 18 years is a long, long time.

This breakup was bound to happen, in some form at some time. Nothing lasts forever, no matter how hard people try.

It’s not perfect, even when you’re winning. You still get sick of each other; but when you’re winning you’re not ready to grab a parachute and jump out of the plane. You’ll tolerate a lot if you’re standing in victory lane, and signing up sponsors left and right.

But when you’re not winning, that’s when the wounds fester and ooze. After a while people look at each other, and the end results, and decide it isn’t worth it anymore.

Frankly, it’s always a little amusing when people express shock at breakups like this. Logic (and experience) says we shouldn’t be at all surprised. Examine all the pairings of driver and owner since the beginning of time; list all those that lasted until death do us part. Hint: the list is tiny. Clear evidence that nearly every racing relationship has a sell-by date.

Tony Stewart and Donny Schatz at the Knoxville Nationals in 2015. (Gene Marderness photo) 

At the moment there is probably a little soreness between Donny and his former team. Time—the same factor that wore them out—is also a healing force, and hopefully the two parties can remain cordial.

Cordial? They really should, because what they had together was magic. Year after year, win after win, triumph after triumph, they rose above everybody in their class.

Donny and TSR created a spectacular body of work. In the end, their breakup will be but a small footnote to one of the greatest motorsports pairings in history.

As it should be.

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